NEW WEB ADDRESS- See the 2002 annual wolf report at
http://westerngraywolf.fws.gov/ for maps of wolf pack
locations and home ranges, tables of wolf numbers and depredations,
litigation and funding issues, and summaries of scientific studies.

WY WS and the Service caught two 50 & 55lb. female pups, one gray one
black near Daniel, WY on the 12th. Great job! Trapping is
continuing to get an adult radioed, if possible. See control.

On the 12th, Kraig Glazier [WS] reported he was sitting in
Avon, MT [NW MT] having lunch with some WS specialists/trappers from Grand
Jct. CO who were here in Montana to learn about wolf stuff, and a guy
walked in the restaurant and said "Are there wolves around here?" Kraig
thought it must be someone who knew them and was joking but NO!- the guy
just was coming through and saw some wolves and wanted to know if that was
possible! The guy said he just saw 3 wolves [ad gray and 2 gray pups]
cross the road just out of Avon and right where the old Halfway pack used
to be. So Kraig et al. drove to the spot and howled a pup out of the woods
right there. They have traps in the area to try and radio-collar a pack
member.

NPT biologist Jim Holyan and volunteer Emily Babcock captured and
radio-collared a total of 3 pups from the Red River pack. This pack is
located south of Elk City, ID. Reports from the U.S. Forest Service, and
ID Dept. of Fish and Game, over the past 2 years finally led to
documentation of this wolf group. There are at least 4 adults and 4 pups
present.

NPT biologist Jason Husseman and volunteer Karen Loveless captured and
radio-collared 2 additional members of the O'Hara Point pack, north of Elk
City, ID. A subadult female (B163) and a male pup (B162) joined male B111
as collared animals. They collared a grey female pup in the Galena pack on
the 19th.

NPT biologists Kent Laudon and Anthony Novack captured and
radio-collared a male pup (B169) from a previously uncollared pack in the
Slate Creek drainage northeast of Riggins, ID. This group was observed
earlier in the summer with at least 2 pups. They will be known as the
Florence pack.

Missing wolf male B52, from the Jureano Mountain pack, it was relocated
to Fish Lake in 1998, may have been re-discovered in southwest MT. The
signal was very weak and there was lots of static, so its presence has not
been confirmed yet. Personnel from the MT wolf recovery program will
investigate further.

We estimate the likely number of wolves and wolf breeding pairs in 2003
will be slightly higher than last year but the rate of growth in the
population is slowing. These estimates are admittedly very rough and could
change significantly once fall/winter aerial tracking with snow cover has
been conducted. We currently estimate a wolf population of: By recovery
area- northwestern Montana- 90 wolves and 3 breeding pairs; central Idaho
362 wolves and 21 breeding pairs; Greater Yellowstone Area 295 wolves and
22 breeding pairs.By state these estimates are: Montana- 161
wolves and 8 breeding pairs; Idaho 346 wolves and 21 breeding pair;
Wyoming 240 wolves and 17 breeding pairs.The total wolf
population estimate for 2003 is 747 wolves and 46 breeding pairs compared
to 663 wolves and 43 breeding pairs in 2002.

WE NEED HELP FROM COOPERATORS AND PUBLIC- We are currently into the
trapping season, when we try to radio-collar wolves from previously
unknown packs and beef up our collar coverage in known packs. Big game
hunters are an important source of wolf sightings. Please report any
sightings of wolf activity to the nearest U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service, state Fish and Game Agency, Forest Service, BLM, Tribal, or USDA
Wildlife Services office.

Control

A sheep carcass was found north of Idaho Falls, ID on the 12th and
tracks of 2 wolves were near it. The sheep belonged to the Sheep
Experiment Station. The herder also reported seeing two wolves in the
area. WS is trapping to try to radio-collar one of them but traps were
pulled after no further wolf sign was documented. Any control action will
be determined by subsequent monitoring.

A depredation occurred east of Burgdorf, ID (approx. 30 miles north of
McCall, ID) involving what may be an unknown group of wolves over the
weekend of the 12th-14th. Over 50 sheep were confirmed killed by wolves.
Lethal control was authorized for the removal of 2 adult wolves. On Sept.
16 Wildlife Services' field agent Justin Mann trapped a pup, but it pulled
out of the trap and escaped. On Sept. 17 Justin caught another pup (B168),
which was radio-collared and released. Several adult wolves were heard
howling in the vicinity, leading to the removal of an adult female. The
control action will continue until a second wolf is removed or the
depredations stop. This is the area that B45 was known to use, but her
radio-collar expired last year. She was previously seen with another
radio-collared wolf, identity unknown, but it was thought that this pair
had never produced pups. Further field work will be conducted to determine
the identities and status of the wolves in this area. The total number of
dead sheep is in the 70's and 4-5 bands that are protected by dogs and
herders have been hit. This group of wolves is likely the same bunch that
has been killing sheep about 7-8 miles away. WS was authorized to kill
this pack of 4-5 wolves.

A ranch between Deerlodge and Avon that had repeated calf depredations
before the Castle Rock pack was removed, reported a possible wolf kill the
11th. There were wolf tracks by the carcass but it looked like it may have
been killed [or taken over] by a black bear [hide inside out], it was
classified as unconfirmed. No further problems have been reported.

Lethal control was authorized to remove 2 wolves, by either the
property owner [he was issued a shoot-on-sight permit on the 9th] or WS.
The pack has been involved in cattle depredations for the past several
years and some pack members were involved in depredations this year.
Aerial shooting is pending when weather allows.

The Daniels pack of up to 16 wolves near Daniels, WY moved into the
foothills and timber and they killed two more sheep on the 15th.
While investigating they found another calf that was probably a wolf kill.
Sheep and cattle are being moved off the allotment and from that area and
no further control is planned at this time.

WS shot a large adult grey male out of the Washakie pack on the 19th.
The pack was on a Forest Service allotment when found and had been
involved in several depredations this summer. This ended the control
action since many bow hunters are starting to use the area.

On the 17th, WS investigated a calf carcass in Tom Miner
Basin where the Chief Joe pack had killed a calf last week. The calf was
not killed by a predator but was just scavenged. The collared female has
remained in or near Tom Miner Basin.

A cattle rancher just east of Tom Miner Basin and north of Gardiner, MT
reported his cattle had been run through several fences earlier this week,
likely by the Sheep Mountain pack. On the 17th, he and another
rancher found the lower part of a calfs leg in a trail heavily used by
wolves. They are continuing to ride the area to search for dead livestock.
We have increased the level of aerial monitoring to help detect if there
is an ongoing depredation problem.

Research

The World Wolf Congress: Bridging Science and Community [see agenda at-
http://www.graywolf.ca/worldwolfcongress/wwc2003ataglance.html ] is
being held in Banff Canada Sept. 25-28. The meeting is held every ten
years and is attended by wolf biologists, managers, and researchers from
all over the world. Northern Rocky Mountain wolf recovery staff will be
presenting several papers.

The Univ. of Chicago Press is taking pre-orders for the epic
all-encompassing book "Wolves: Behavior, Ecology, and Conservation" Edited
by L. David Mech and Luigi Boitani. 2003. University of Chicago Press. You
can order from the International Wolf Center by calling 1-800-359-9653 ext
21. They should be available in October 2003.

Information and education and law enforcement

The National Wolf Awareness 2003 wolf poster is available from the
Timber Wolf Alliance
www.northland.edu/soei/timber_wolf.html
or
twa@northland.edu . It is a stunning painting of an adult
wolf in forest shadows called "The Glance" by Jim Turgeon. On the back is
a map of wolves in the U.S. and current accurate information on gray and
red wolves in the U.S. Limited copies [please- for educators or classrooms
only!] can be obtained from any of the northern Rocky Mountain wolf field
offices or cooperators in Montana, Idaho, or Wyoming. Congratulations to
the Timber Wolf Alliance! This is an outstanding educational poster.

The U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service has prepared a web page that has
various links to state wolf management plans, information about wolf
reclassification and delisting. It can be accessed at

On Sept. 17 Jim Holyan gave a presentation to about 35 10- and
11-year-olds at the McCall Outdoor Science School. The children were from
the elementary school in Kamiah, ID.

Niemeyer, Nadeau, and others appeared on ID Public Television on Sept.
18 as panel members on a show entitled "Focus West." The show was a forum
discussing predators and their management in the west. It will air again
on Sept. 21 at 7:00pm Mountain time in ID. The show can also be accessed
at
http://focuswest.org/index2003d.cfm .

The Service's weekly wolf report can now also be viewed at the
Service's Region 6 web site at http://westerngraywolf.fws.gov/ .
This report is government public property and can be used for any purpose.
Please distribute as you see fit.